My companion for the morning is Craig Fahey, boat skipper and hiking guide for Eco Wānaka Adventures, and a regular visitor to Lake Wānaka s most remote island. En route to the compact lake that also resembles a rugged natural infinity pool, he introduces me to Mōu Waho s island residents. Extinct on the New Zealand mainland since 1920, the buff weka was only reintroduced from offshore islands in 2004, but now there s more than 200 of the squat and curious birds ranging across Mōu Waho s 120 hectares. We re met by one as we arrive on the island, and Craig also points out the well-known Sally, confidently patrolling the scrubby fringes of Arethusa Pool as we arrive closer to the island s 473m summit at Tyrwhitt Peak.
New Zealand s best swimming holes, beaches and outdoor pools to visit this summer
27 Dec, 2020 05:16 PM
8 minutes to read
By: Ewan McDonald
Summer is bliss. Or Bliss , if your coming-of-age memory is Th Dudes gig at the Soundshell.
It s the rosy beginning, burnt-orange middle and fading end of the golden weather, when life is a beach, a surf break, lakeshore, swimming hole, whitewater raft-ride, sit-down or stand-up paddle bay; when New Zealand becomes a country of sails.
Aotearoa has 15,000km of coastline, which means that each of us gets 3 metres to find a tree, spread out a towel and moor a gently defrosting chilly bin.